The Reality of Suffering

The fact of Pain does not escape anyone…we all know if first-hand. It is common to all men. Whether it comes through sickness, financial suffering, natural disasters, or other forms of suffering everyone experiences it in their lives. Everyone Suffers…the just and the unjust. It is common to man.

In fact, the question of Evil (or suffering) troubles people more than any other issue. Believers and unbelievers struggle with why there is so much pain in the world. These various forms of suffering or pain is generally referred to as “evil”. There is evil in the world and it takes the forms of pain, heart-ache, and suffering. From a Christian perspective we might proudly exclaim that God is sovereign and He knows and works everything according to His plan, His good pleasure. The struggle comes in when we wonder why our loving Father would allow us and others to suffer. Why would he allow “innocent” people to suffer?

The argument can be stated philosophically as:

Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? …. then He is not omnipotent.
Is God able, but not willing? …. then He is malevolent.
Is He both willing and able? …. then why is there evil?
(Epicurus, Greek philosopher)

The Answer to why God allows suffering is both simple and incredibly difficult.

In this part, we want to address the reality of pain and suffering. In the next two parts we will address God’s Response to suffering and His reasons for suffering, before we talk about how we should respond to those who are suffering.

So where do we begin…? It is best to begin with a proper understanding of what Scripture says about the issue – Grounded in Doctrine, before addressing it emotionally. We need to understand it in the head (intellectually) and then apply it to our heart (emotionally).

Evil/Suffering/Pain appears in one of a few types: Moral evil, Natural evil, Accidental Evil, or Spiritual Evil.

Moral evil is defined as some form of suffering due to man’s actions, while natural evil is the result of natural disasters, disease. Accidental evil is often the result of cause and effect. Spiritual evil is brought about by demonic activity. So, while murder is considered a moral evil, a tornado ripping through a neighborhood or tripping would be natural evil, and breaking a leg is simply an accidental evil brought about by the consequences of tripping on a toy left out on the floor.

Ask yourself: What examples of evil, pain, and suffering do you see in the world? In your life? How prevalent is evil in the world? Do you think evil is more prevalent now than in the past? What types or examples of evil do you see in the Bible?

More personal questions we ask ourselves…

• Why does God allow so much suffering?
• Why did God allow my loved one to die, or get cancer, or have a miscarriage?
• Why does God not protect the children from terrible suffering?
• Could God not stop the worst of the evils in this world?
• How could there be any purpose in all of this?

The challenge of dealing with suffering can have dramatic effects upon one’s faith. For some suffering draws people away from God. It results in people becoming angry at God for letting something bad happen in their life or the life of a loved one. For others, suffering can draw people toward God. When suffering comes, they draw strength from God and reach out to him for comfort, deliverance, or perseverance.

When answering the question of pain and suffering we must be careful that while we want to be comforting, our answers must be:

• Biblically accurate
• Theologically consistent
• Contextually relevant
• Personally applicable

Let’s define some terms related to the discussion before moving on.

• Sovereignty: God’s will is absolute in that it is not subject to the dictates of another
• Omnipotence: God’s power is absolute in perfection, extend and degree
• Omniscience: God knows all past, present and future knowledge including that of people and events
• Providence: God’s governing prerogatives exercised within created order.
• Divine Council: Events God has determined beforehand regarding the flow of and the unfolding of history in time within created order
• Suffering: That which causes discomfort, pain, and disquietedness
• Evil (in practice): Broadly that which is contrary to God or His order.
• Evil (in principle): A privation or deviation of the good (absence of good)
• All suffering has its roots in evil, but not all suffering is evil.

5 Key Points Concerning the Reality of Evil:

• The Origin of Evil (Isaiah 14:12-15; Genesis 3)
  • God did not create evil
    • What about Isaiah 45:7? “…I create evil…” – Context is judgment on Israel
  • God DID allow evil to exist
    • It is the best option to have a world where pain can exist

Anselm: “I acknowledge, O Lord, with thanksgiving, that thou hast created this thy image in me, so that remembering thee, I may think of thee, may love thee. But this image is so effaced and worn away by my faults that, it is so obscured by the smoke of my sins, that it cannot do what it was made to do, unless thou renew and reform it. I am not trying, O Lord, to penetrate thy loftiness, for I cannot begin to match my understanding with it, but I desire in some measure to understand thy truth, which my heart believes and loves, For I do not seek to understand in order to believe, but I believe in order that I might understand. For this too I believe, that unless I believe, I shall not understand.”

• • Satan sinned, introducing evil into existence (Isaiah 14:12-15)
  • Man sinned, introducing evil into God’s creation (Genesis 3; Romans 5:12)

• The Depth of Evil (Genesis 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 5:12-21; 1 John 5:19)
  • Sin has brought death (physical and spiritual)
  • Sin has cursed man (every man sins)
  • The heart of man is wicked (Jeremiah 17:9)
  • Genesis 6:5:
    “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”
• The Extent of Evil (Genesis 3; Romans 8:18-22)
  • All of Creation has been affected by sin
    • Man – Moral Evil
    • Creation – Natural Evil
• The Inexplicability of Evil (Job)
  • Why there is pain is a simple question to answer: SIN
  • Why God doesn’t prevent it for those He loves is more difficult to answer
  • Easy to see why evil (bad) people suffer, but why ‘good’ people
  • We cannot expect to know the Hows and Whys of everything
    • That alone is not much solace
    • There is always purpose in what God allows.
    • Example of Job: He never learned why he was suffering
• The Finality of Evil (Revelation 21:1-4)
  • One day there will be no more pain
    • Began when sin entered the world (Genesis 3)
    • Ends when sin is done away (Revelation 21)
    • Interesting that the first description of the new heaven and earth describes it as one without suffering
    • Jesus defeated Pain and Suffering when he defeated sin on the Cross (1 Corinthians 15:55-57; Romans 6:8-10)

The Cross of Christ Provides the Remedy for our Sin and Suffering

Takeaway Truths:

• Understand the kinds of suffering we face
• Understand the problem of evil as it relates to the Existence of God
• Understand where evil (pain and suffering) came from
• Understand the duration of evil – one day it will end.